When I read

Answering all todays comments in a blog post seems like a good idea though it might all be more than anyone wanted to know.
So when do I read?
Well let's start my week on say a Monday morning because that's the first of my three 9 to 5 working days.Simon Bates used to wake us up, now it's Jane Jones but always Classic FM as over the years we've found it the best radio station to wake up to, bit of news but not too much, soothing music, gentle voices. Bookhound is first out and he brings me breakfast in bed at about 7.15am.Here begins my first read of the day while the men of the house chill out in the kitchen beneath me I don't have to spoil my day by being there and they can then put the plastic milk bottle on the table regardless.If I push my luck I can read until the 8am news and be in my office (showered and dressed fortunately) by 9am.So that's always 45 minutes of excellent reading time.
Work then intervenes but at about 1pm, instead of sitting at my desk and eating my lunch, I have now trained myself to hop in the car and drive the 5 minutes up onto Dartmoor and have another 30 minutes reading.It's a wonderful distraction from my working day and admittedly some days I do just sit and stare at the view but I'm ready to return to spread joy and happiness until 5pm.
Home is only a ten minute drive, bookhound works from home and he shops and cooks (not because I make him but because he loves Morrison's and Dave's Saves and 3 for 2's are becoming legendary) so he has usually got supper ready for 6ish and by 7pm I have a whole three hours or more of reading ahead of me if I want it. Now that we are no longer a taxi service the return of evenings has been something of an unaccustomed luxury.I also read myself to sleep, that may take 5 minutes or 50.
On Wednesday evening the weekend begins in my head and I switch off the NHS light and switch on the Book light.This has been a key decision after doing the job for so long, it's so easy to let it invade your thinking all the time you are not there.Invariably that involves worrying about decisions and waking at 3am with a start and remembering something you haven't written down and should have done and what if something awful happens and your records are locked down by the police and it's your name on the front page of the Daily Mail for being negligent OMG OMG OMG.... but I don't let that happen any more. I'm paid to be there and do it wholeheartedly and thoroughly for three days, I'm not paid to think and worry about it for the other four so I don't.
Reading and now writing this blog are the best "total immersion-leave it all behind" therapy I have ever found.
I have four whole days of playing ahead of me to allocate as much reading time as I want, why not? Once the house stuff is done and we've caught up with friends, kept appointments (new reading glasses tomorrow, snazzy has won over boring and conventional this time) and perhaps had a jolly hither and thither around the West Country I can devote a sizeable chunk of time to reading, writing the blog, doing book reviews if I want to, and right now I really do want to.